


does game terminology count as a language

by lokh



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-29
Updated: 2015-03-29
Packaged: 2018-03-20 03:58:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3635799
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lokh/pseuds/lokh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>first of all, i'd like to apologize for any misconceptions written about monster hunter, as i do not play it. neither did oikawa tooru. until he met kozume kenma, that is.</p>
            </blockquote>





	does game terminology count as a language

**Author's Note:**

> for the hq rarepair week, day 2: language!

When you heard that Tobio-chan found another setter to idolize, you were naturally curious. If the great Tobio looked up to them so much, what kind of person must they be? Would they be like you (though whether Tobio continues to admire you is up for debate), talent born from effort? Maybe they were like Iwa-chan (because who _doesn't_ admire him), sturdy and dependable. Or they could even be like Tobio himself, all prickly and arrogant and natural genius.

You were completely wrong on all counts.

It's not like in the beginning that you deliberately sought him out! Certainly, you were interested, but not to the extent that you'd go out of your way to find him, not with all the practice and the work you had to do and your high school years coming to an end. After brief research via word of mouth and the ever-helpful internet, you were provided with a name (Kozume Kenma of Nekoma) and admittedly not much else beyond apparent standoffishness and tendency to disappear into the background. Not really promising, not really something that piqued your interest enough to dedicate time to.

It was thus a pleasant coincidence to find that one of the matches you were observing was, not _involving_ Nekoma, but on the same court as them.

The setter wasn't immediately outstanding. Not in the way you could immediately pick out Tobio-chan for being a genius, or Ushiwaka-chan for being a monster. It was subtle, like the strategies he used; the thought that went into a simple glance, the careful observation. His was the quiet of contemplation, and while certainly he was an interesting setter, it wasn't like he was anything incredible, his team itself not being a pushover (you'd better understood the whole blood and brain thing by the end of the match). What was it that drew Tobio so much to him? What made him so _special_?

(For the record, you'd found out about his weird obsession via Iwa-chan, who had apparently been texted by Tobio about whether he knew anything about their setter. He refused to tell you anything about it. No, you aren't jealous. And even if, in the smallest capacity, you _were_ , now you're really, really just curious. _Really, Iwa-chan!_ )

It was to this end that at the end of the match, you sought Kozume out, intending to maybe talk with him a little and get a feel for what sort of a person he was, and as the court was clearing out, stands emptying and shifting, he made eye contact with you as you approached with a wave

and he _looked away and ran._

(It reminds you of the time Karasuno's manager ignored you, except no, she _definitely didn't ignore you_ and there is no way that's what this kid did then, nuh uh.)

 _Maybe_ anyone else would've given up. It was clear that he didn't really want to talk to _anyone_ , let alone _you_ (did he even know who you were?), and somehow you didn't think that talking about volleyball would build any sort of rapport. The match left him looking a bit dead-eyed; no frustration, or relief, or contentedness. He didn't seem at all _interested_ in volleyball, despite playing it, and instead of making you angry or put off, it just made you want to know more about him, like why he'd insist on playing if he didn't even _want_ to.

It's been about a week or so since then. You're apparently 'less prickly' now (okay, sure, Iwa-chan. You're not prickly!), and though you thought that maybe you'd care less about a setter you'd previously barely heard of given some time, you still want to know more, and maybe prove that he totally wasn't ignoring you and you can absolutely get him to talk.

Now, just because that's what you _want_ , it doesn't mean that you're actively seeking him out and finding out where he hangs out and/or lives to come into contact with him, just because you don't have any matches close to each other and aren't in the same prefecture. Iwa-chan can accuse you all he wants, but you're not that kind of person!

You bumping into him at the convenience store is a _complete coincidence._

(You'll later find out that Nekoma had come over for a practice match with Karasuno, and had been given the chance to wander around for a while afterwards. Right now, you're just thanking your lucky stars and whatever gods are watching over you for this opportunity.)

Not _physically_ bump into him. If you had, you wouldn't have had any time to strategize, and that wouldn't have been any good. If the last encounter has taught you anything, it's that going up to him all willy-nilly wouldn't achieve anything, and he might actually _flee_. You'd recognized him immediately by his pudding hair and red jacket, standing outside the store, occasionally casting glances to the automatic doors. Waiting for someone, maybe? He turns his attention back to his hands, and you realize that he's playing a video game.

You feel... _something_. (Oh, shush!) A small jump. He doesn't look like he's having _fun_ , per se, but somehow it seems like his entire demeanor is different from when he was on court, and it's caught you off guard. You can't really place it. You're not about to think something so rude as that he doesn't look concentrated _on_ court, but it's different from now, from how his entire body is curling in to focus on his console, steady and tense and absorbed and before you can stop yourself you are walking over and _goddamnit, Tooru,_ now he's going to run away.

Any trace of... whatever that was disappears when his head snaps up at your approaching footsteps, finger hovering over the pause and eyes flickering with wariness. Now you feel guilty, but you try not to falter.

“Hey,” you say, lightly, and he nods tersely, curling in on himself in a way that you _definitely_ don't want him to. “You're Nekoma's setter, right? I'm Oikawa Tooru. I'm the setter of Aobajousai?”

Damn it, that wasn't supposed to sound like a question.

“Ah,” he says, not any less uncomfortable, and while you'd like to give yourself the benefit of the doubt and assume that it meant he knows who you are, in all likelihood he's just remembering the trainwreck that was your last meeting. It's clear that volleyball talk will get you nowhere; he looks like he'd like nothing more than to melt into the ground and/or continue playing his video game.

It looks like the most obvious route is sometimes the best route. Now it's just how to go about it. After an awkward pause, featuring him casting more desperate glances at the door and you trying not to clear your throat too loudly, you speak.

“So. What are you playing? Is it any good?”

Maybe no one else would've noticed, but you've become quite accustomed to recognizing body language and also you may or may not be watching this boy more carefully than the average person, so you definitely _do_ notice when

he _lights up_.

It's nothing big, nothing obvious, just the widening of his eyes to bright alertness, the slight curl of his lips and the raise of his brow, his shoulders drawing up from their self-conscious slump and his feet suddenly not inching away from you that has you completely unprepared for him _actually talking to you_.

The stream of words that come out of his mouth within the next minute (ashamedly) go in one ear and out the other. Words like 'HP' or 'affinity' and words you thought you knew the meaning to until he uses them in a context that says no, you really don't. As a video game, he says, it's pretty good, but compared to the other games in the series and in terms of gameplay I wouldn't say it's anything spectacular and this is the _most_ you've ever heard him say (to be fair, it's also the first time he's addressing _you_ specifically) and also the _fastest_ you've heard him speak. At the end of it (hopefully you weren't gaping for too long), where he looks up at you hopefully but also cautiously, you smile, and say, “oh, that's really interesting! I'll have to think about checking it out sometime.”

He stares at you, gaze calculating, and you think to yourself that there is absolutely no way he hasn't realized you have no idea what he just said. But then he smiles, just barely, almost shyly, and says, “alright.”

 

 

This is how you find yourself playing an RPG.

It's not like you're _opposed_ to the idea of playing video games, or even that you've never played them before. It's just that in-between classes, practicing, and work, you haven't really had time to dedicate to anything else. To think that what _finally_ gets you to pick up your dusty-ass PSP and buy a game (using money that _you never use for anything other than volleyball, oh my God, who is she, what happened this time_ ) was meeting a really cute and intriguing setter.

Anyway.

This game isn't really what you thought it'd be. Not that you had any preconceptions. You'd remembered, at least, the name of the game he'd been playing, and you'd vaguely recognized it due to its popularity, but you didn't really have any experience with _Monster Hunter_ yourself. You thought there'd be classes? There aren't, apparently, you're finding out through the character creation process. A name? You decide to take it easy and just go with 'Tooru' for now.

Even just a few minutes into playing the game, you're starting to fill in the blanks of everything he'd said. Sort of like learning a new language, though you wouldn't say that to his face (or really any other child of the modern age). It's not really something you'd choose to do for yourself, but it's fun in its own way. Does he really find playing games like this more fun than playing volleyball?

His eyes were wide and cat-like, staring at his console, similar to the attention he gives in volleyball, different in that they shone with excitement. He'd given a small huff of pleasure after a burst of button-pressing (maybe he'd finished a particularly difficult quest or something?), and had also looked far more disappointed at having been beaten by a monster than at losing a point in a match.

Maybe he doesn't like playing volleyball all too much, but you feel like you're starting to understand it better. The playing the games and the playing of volleyball. All that stuff about the blood flowing to the brain and heart. In a party, you need to help each other out and do what you do the best you can. If this is the sort of thing that he's interested in, maybe that's why being in a team sport could be at all appealing to him. Is that why he keeps playing volleyball?

You don't understand anything about this boy, and if this is the language you need to speak to be able to understand him, then by _god_ , you will learn it.

“Hey, Iwa-chan! How do you beat Black Diablos?”

“...Oikawa, it's one in the morning.”

And it'll be forever a testament to the lateness of the day that Iwa-chan didn't actually call you by an insult. As his captain, you are proud of him.

“Yes. So do you know?”

“Why are you playing... whatever it is you're playing?”

“We're seeing Nekoma tomorrow,” you say, because obviously this explains everything. There's a long pause on the other end of the line.

“Oikawa,” he says, in a measured tone, “on one hand, I am glad that you are not staying up late watching matches. On the other hand, I am _not_ glad that you are instead staying up late _playing video games_. Is this gonna affect the match tomorrow? What does this have to do with Nekoma? We're not even playing against them. Did you finally snap?”

“I know that! That we're not playing against them. And don't worry,” you wave him off, “I've already watched the matches. I've got _priorities._ So can you tell me or not?”

“Uh huh, and _Nekoma_ apparently takes precedence over staying awake tomorrow. What, do you have your eye on one of them or something?”

“Yep!”

Another pause.

“...Nekoma doesn't have any female managers.”

“Nope!”

If he's made any sort of connection with what you're doing and their setter, it doesn't seem like he's going to mention it.

“...are you sure this isn't going to affect your playing?”

“It's fine! It's not like we're playing against them tomorrow, right?”

“Well, as long as you know what you're doing. And no, I have no idea how to beat Diabolical Ass, or whatever. Get some fucking sleep.”

“Will do, Iwa-chan!” He's hung up by the time you've finished that sentence. That's alright. You'll just beat this thing first and go to sleep.

 

 

You didn't beat the thing.

You didn't do anything so ridiculous as not going to sleep _at all_ in your attempts to actually beat the damn thing. You're not _irresponsible,_ after all. Instead, you spent an hour trying to beat it, failing, then spent a desperate five minutes wondering whether you should just. Look it up or something and have it over with. Then you realized that this gave you the perfect opportunity to approach Kozume on common ground, and it was this knowledge that kept you from falling asleep on the bus and beyond. (That, and a reasonable dose of caffeine.)

Iwa-chan side-eyes you as the whistle blows, but otherwise says nothing. You won, after all, so it's not like you were underperforming (though you're pretty sure he's still going to get on your case later). Nekoma's match had finished a few minutes ago, and are halfway through packing up all the equipment when the coach has finished his post-match talk and you find Kozume standing by the ball bin.

“Hey!”

He still jumps at the sound of your voice, but it's a huge achievement that he doesn't immediately look for an escape route. He looks tired, but he doesn't seem as wary as usual (probably since he's no longer anticipating you talking about volleyball), and he doesn't move as you approach him.

“Hey...”

“How do you beat Black Diablos?”

There's a moment where he doesn't seem to comprehend what you've just said to him. You give him a second.

He doesn't quite smile, but it might as well be with how much he brightens up.

“Oh... which game are you playing?”

“It's the same one as yours, I think.”

“What do you usually use...?”

“I haven't been playing for long... the lances are good, but I'm not really sticking with any?”

“Do you have any with ice attribute?”

“Umm... ah, wait, let me get my PSP!”

You try not to look too giddy when you walk (walk, not skip!) over to your bag. But he's _actually_ talking to you! And you don't feel like he's speaking a foreign language at you! (And also you might now be able to beat that fucking monster.) If anyone on the team is looking at you funny as you make your way back, well. Iwa-chan is there to shake his head at them.

"Um, wait, give me a second... here. What should I...?"

"Let me see your item box."

He shuffles closer to you and you allow him to commandeer your console. Some of his team mates have slowed in their cleaning (one outright dropping whatever equipment he was holding), and the tall one with the bed-head that you recognize as their captain does a half-assed job at pretending he isn't listening in about a meter away. You decide that this isn't as important as the fact that Kozume continues to grace you with his presence, and you are even willing to put up with the fact that this close, you collectively smell like a sweaty dumpster. He doesn't seem to mind, either.

"Hey. Look here. Maybe if you try this..."

You stand there for a few minutes, watching him play over his shoulder, then he hands it back to you. You sort of expect him to leave you to it, but he stands and watches with you as you try to emulate his actions.

It is sort of hard to concentrate with him staring at you so intensely. Well, at your gameplay. Is this what it's like to be stared down by him on court? No, it's different. On court, it's like, sure, he's observing you, but only in relation to the rest of the game, and in a manner completely detached from his emotions. As self-absorbed as it sounds, right now, it seems like all his thoughts are focused on _you_ and what you're doing and he seems  _invested_ and  _interested_ and that's. Really making it difficult to think properly, to say the least. If you try to look over and make eye contact now, you are definitely going to mess up.

It takes a bit, but you watch the monster go down and it's all you can do to not start whooping and cheering, and you have officially forgotten why you began this entire endeavor.

“Uwa, thank you, Ken-chan!”

His eyes widen. The captain stifles something that sounds suspiciously like a snort, and it looks like he's not even trying to pretend he's not eavesdropping anymore. The tall one is excitedly saying something in the background that you can't be bothered to decipher.

You are _mortified._

You think you can hear Iwa-chan slapping his face.

Admittedly, you go around adding 'chan' to people's names all the time. It's endearing! It's affectionate! It's also possibly something that Kozume is _not_ amenable to and you may have just lost whatever degree of familiarity you've managed to earn in the past few weeks!

Kozume smiles.

"No problem, Tooru."

You are officially _dead_.

The bed-head loses his shit in the background.

"You should try playing _Monster Hunter Online_. That way, we can play at the same time."

"Huh? Oh, yeah! That sounds fun!"

Then before you know it he's asking for your phone number and mail address, and he leaves you feeling rather like you've been steamrolled. You don't know how long you've been glued to the spot. Possibly a small eternity. You take a moment to marvel at the fact that you started off wanting to find out what sort of setter he was. Well, now you know - certainly, he's an _interesting_ setter. At the moment, you don't have the clarity of mind to realize that the reason you think this has, in fact, next to nothing to do with his actual setting skills. Then someone's jostling your shoulder and it's Iwa-chan saying, "goddamnit, Assikawa, help out with the packing, why don't you?"

You're on autopilot while you clear up the net, still trying to process what just happened, and it's just by the doors of the storage room when Iwa-chan says, "what were you two even talking about? I could barely understand what you were saying."

"We were talking about _Monster Hunter_. The game we're playing."

"'We'?"

"Yeah."

"The game that you stayed up until presumably three in the morning playing?"

"How rude! I was only awake till two, I'll have you know."

He stares at you. He squints. He opens his mouth.

Then he sighs.

"Don't stay up late again, you hear?"

And you feel like you understand Kenma a bit better now.

**Author's Note:**

> how long was oikawa standing outside the convenience store staring at kenma? no one is quite sure, but it was long enough for hinata and kuroo to notice from inside the store and wonder if they were going to have to break up a fight. after a few minutes kuroo had to wonder whether hed have to break a certain someones limbs
> 
> also sorry if the diabolical ass joke didnt translate, its because the japanese name for the monster is 'diaburosu ashu' and. yep.
> 
> also im not gonna lie i spent the whole fic under the impression that oikawa adds -chan to the name of people he respects, then i remembered that its arakita that does that and oikawa is just mean sometimes


End file.
